HP PCs - Troubleshooting Wireless Network and Internet (Windows 8)

If your computer originally came with Windows 8 and has HP Recovery Manager, you can use it to reinstall the wireless network adapter.

1. If you are using an external USB wireless network adapter, unplug it, restart your computer, and then plug it into a different USB port.
2. From the Start screen, type recovery manager to open the Search charm, and then select HP Recovery Manager from the search results.
   
3. If a User Account Control message opens, click Yes.

   note:

   If you cannot find HP Recovery Manager on your computer, use Device Manager to reinstall the device driver.

4. When the Recovery Manager screen opens, click Drivers and Applications Reinstall.
   
5. Scroll down through the list of drivers and select the name of your computer's wireless adapter.
   
6. Wait until the driver installs and restart your computer if prompted to do so.
7. Try connecting to the Internet again. If problems persist, continue to the next step.

If your computer does not have HP Recovery Manager, use Windows Device Manager to uninstall the wireless adapter and have Windows install the driver.

1. If you are using an external USB wireless network adapter or cellular broadband device, unplug it, restart your computer, and then plug it into a different USB port after Windows opens.
2. From the Start screen, type device manager to open the Search charm, and then select Device Manager from the search results.
   
3. Double-click Network adapters.
   
4. Right-click the name of your wireless network adapter, and then select Uninstall.

   note:

   If the name of the network adapter is missing from the network adapters category, the network adapter hardware is not connected or the device driver cannot Plug and Play. If this happens, turn off the computer and check the hardware connection to your wireless adapter hardware. Service the computer if problems are found.

   
5. When the Confirm Device Uninstall screen displays, click OK and wait for the device to be uninstalled.
   
   The name of the wireless adapter no longer shows in the network adapters category when it has been uninstalled.
6. At the top of the Device Manager window, click Action, and then select Scan for hardware changes.
   The computer reinstalls wireless network and the wireless network adapter name is shown in the Network adapters category.
   
7. After the network adapter name appears in Device Manager, close Device Manager, and then restart the computer.
8. Try connecting to the Internet again. If problems persist, continue to the next step.

HP tests and posts many updated drivers from wireless adapter manufacturers. HP might have a more current version of the wireless driver than the one you are using. To find out if a driver is available for your model of computer, go to the HP Customer Support - Software and Driver Downloads page. If a Let's identify your product to get started page displays, select your computer type, type the model name of your computer, and then click Submit. The product support page opens.

In many cases, the wireless driver is part of a driver package for your motherboard called a chipset. When visiting the HP website, look for a wireless driver first, and then the chipset if a wireless adapter driver is not available. If you need more information, read the details for the software downloads that are available. After you find the driver you are looking for, click the category name, and then click Download.

note:

If your computer currently does not have access to the Internet, use another computer with Internet access to download and install the wireless driver softpaq to a USB storage device. You can then connect the storage device to a USB port on your computer and open the softpaq file that was downloaded to update your driver or chipset.

For more information about downloading drivers, see Downloading or Updating Software and Drivers for HP Computers.

Install any available wireless driver or chipset updates, and then try connecting to the Internet.

If the updated driver fails to solve the problem, go to the next step.

HP personal computers with Windows come with HP Support Assistant installed. HP Support Assistant can be used to automatically find and install the latest updates for your computer.

note:

If HP Support Assistant is not installed on your computer, you can go to the HP Support Assistant site to download and install the HP Support Assistant software. If your computer cannot connect to the Internet, and then use Microsoft's Windows 8 automated network troubleshooting built into Windows 8 instead of this step.

note:

The images in this section might vary slightly from what you see on your screen.

1. In Windows, search for and open HP Support Assistant.
2. In the My devices screen, click Check for updates and messages.
   
3. If HP Support Assistant finds updates, the number of available updates displays in the My PC section.
   To see the available updates, click the Updates tab.
   
   The Updates available screen displays.
   
4. To install an update, click the Install now icon next to the update.
5. If the updated driver fails to solve the problem, go to the next step.

Other websites might provide driver updates for your exact model of wireless hardware. If you cannot find an updated driver from HP, you can use these steps to see if a more updated version is available from the World Wide Web.

  caution:

HP does not control and is not responsible for information outside of the HP website. While there are many reputable sites that provide drivers, some sites might be malicious. Download software only from sites you know and trust.

1. From the Start screen, type device manager to open the Search charm, and then select Device Manager from the search results.
   
2. Double-click Network adapters, and then right-click the name of the Wireless Adapter and select Properties.
   
3. Click the Driver tab and look at the name next to Driver Provider. You might want to refer to the driver date and name as well when looking for an updated driver.
   
4. Visit the driver provider's website to look for an updated driver. You can find the website by searching the Internet using the driver provider's name.
5. If you cannot find an updated driver on the driver provider website or you cannot find the provider's website, click the Details tab in Device Manager, select Hardware Ids from the Property list, and then right-click the first hardware device ID in the list and select Copy. You can then paste the hardware ID into an Internet search page to find sites that host the drivers.
   
6. If an updated driver is found, follow the instructions to install it. Otherwise, use another method to find and update the driver or go to the next step to continue troubleshooting.

     caution:

   HP does not control and is not responsible for information outside of the HP website. Download software only from sites you know and trust.

7. If the updated driver fails to solve the problem, go to the next step.

Downloading and installing the latest wireless LAN adapter driver can resolve many issues with a slow wireless Internet connection.

to use Device Manager to find the latest WLAN driver:

1. From the Start screen, type device manager to open the Search charm, and then select Device Manager from the search results.
   
2. Double-click Network adapters, and then right-click the name of the Wireless Adapter, and then select Update Driver Software.
   
3. Click Search automatically for updated driver software.
   
4. If an updated driver is found, follow the instructions to install it.
   If Device Manager does not find an updated driver, you can check the wireless adapter manufacturer's website.
5. In Device Manager, right-click the name of the adapter, and then click Properties.
   
6. Click the Driver tab. Make a note of the driver provider, date and version.
   
7. Check the driver provider's website for an updated driver.
8. If the updated driver fails to solve the problem, go to the next step.

Environment can greatly impact the effectiveness of your wireless network. Review the following conditions and recommended actions to improve your wireless network experience.

When choosing a location, minimize the amount of solid objects between them, especially electronic devices and metal objects. If you find that the wireless connection is still weak or has trouble connecting, consider purchasing a different antenna for your router or set up another router as a signal repeater.

If other devices can connect to your wireless network, but your computer cannot connect, a BIOS setting might be the cause of the problem. Use the section that matches your type of computer for specific BIOS reset steps:

Your wireless router has settings stored in firmware that might interfere with your computer's ability to connect or perform well (channel selection and band for example). Resetting the firmware settings on your router and re-establishing connections for all the devices that use the router is a good way to start over and fix many types of wireless related issues.

Use the following steps as a general guideline, but refer to the documentation that came with your router for detailed instructions or in the event these steps do not work for your router.

1. Connect your computer to the router using a supported network cable.
2. Open an Internet browser and enter the default IP addresses for your router into the browser URL address field.

   note:

   These default IP addresses, names and passwords are provided for informational purposes only and might not work with your router model. If this information does not allow you to log in to your router's setup page, refer to the User Guide that came with your router.

   Router Brand Name	Router IP Address	User Name(s)	Password(s)
   3Com	http://192.168.1.1	admin	no password required, or admin
   Belkin	http://192.168.2.1	no user name required, or admin	no password required
   D-Link	http://192.168.0.1	admin, or user	no password required, or admin
   Linksys	http://192.168.1.1	admin, no user name required, or Comcast	admin, no password required, or 1234
   Netgear	http://192.168.0.1	admin	password, 1234, or setup

3. Enter a user name and/or password.
4. When you have administrator access to the router, change the default name (or SSID) of the router.
5. Set up Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) or wireless encryption (WEP), to prevent other computers from connecting to your home network.
6. Enter a network access password, sometimes called a passphrase. Make sure to pick a password that is easy to remember, such as a phone number that you dial often or a phrase that is familiar.

If your computer can connect to the wireless router but performance is poor or the connection drops, changing the wireless channel band might help. Changing the wireless channel works best for 2.4 GHz routers and environments with lots of wireless network activity, such as apartment buildings.

The steps you need to change the wireless channel depend on the brand and model of wireless router you are using. You can use the following general steps to change the channels for most of the popular wireless routers. If these steps do not work, refer to the user guide that came with your router.

1. Connect your computer directly to the router using a supported network cable.
2. Open an Internet browser and enter the default IP addresses for your router into the browser URL address field.

   note:

   These default IP addresses, names and passwords are provided for informational purposes only and might not work with your router model. If this information does not allow you to log in to your router's setup page, refer to the User Guide that came with your router.

   Router Brand Name	Router IP Address	User Name(s)	Password(s)
   3Com	http://192.168.1.1	admin	no password required, or admin
   Belkin	http://192.168.2.1	no user name required, or admin	no password required
   D-Link	http://192.168.0.1	admin, or user	no password required, or admin
   Linksys	http://192.168.1.1	admin, no user name required, or Comcast	admin, no password required, or 1234
   Netgear	http://192.168.0.1	admin	password, 1234, or setup

3. Enter a user name and/or password.
4. Scan through the setup pages on the web form to find the channel selection settings.
5. Write down the name of the channel that your router is currently using in case you need to change it back.
6. Select another number and save your settings. For example, if the channel is set to 6, select channel 1 and save.
7. Test your wireless devices on your network to see if performance has improved. If not, you can repeat these steps and try another channel until you find one that works well.

Outdated firmware might affect performance, security, or prevent the router from accessing the Internet or certain webpages. Log in to the configuration menu for the router (as was done in the previous section) and use the menu to update the firmware dedicated to the router. Consult the User Guide that came with your manual for information on how to perform a firmware update. It is a good idea to connect the computer directly to the router using its network cable when doing the firmware update.

Most wireless devices can be turned off by the system to save power. In some sleep scenarios, the device might wake properly when the system returns from sleep or hibernate. To prevent this from happening, adjust the power management settings for the wireless adapter.

1. From the Start screen, type device manager to open the Search charm, and then select Device Manager from the search results.
   
2. Double-click Network Adapters to expand the list, right-click the wireless (Wi-Fi) adapter in the list, and then select Properties.
   
3. In the adapter properties window, click the Power Management tab.
4. Remove the check mark next to Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power, and then click OK.
   

Close the Device Manager, restart the notebook computer, and attempt to reconnect to the wireless network.

If your computer originally came with Windows 8 and has HP Recovery Manager, you can use it to remove all software and restore your computer's original software configuration. Before using this option, make sure you back up all of your important files. For more information, refer to Performing an HP System Recovery (Windows 8)

If you have tried the actions in this document and cannot establish a connection or the wireless connection continues to perform poorly, your wireless adapter card might need to be reseated or replaced. Service the computer to replace or repair the wireless adapter hardware.